GAZA, May 27 (NNN-WAFA) – At least 40 more Palestinian civilians were killed, including women and children, and some others injured last night, in Israel’s bombing of tents in north-western Rafah, the southernmost city of the Gaza Strip.
Israeli forces fired about eight rockets towards the tents, in a newly established camp, crowded with thousands of displaced people, near the warehouses of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA).
Local sources said, it was a “severe and unprecedented” Israeli airstrike, on the densely populated area of displaced families, igniting tents made of plastic and tin, as well as, civilian vehicles.
Video clips circulated on Facebook showed flames rising intensively in the area, and fires engulfing tents still inhabited by many, including children and women.
The sources mentioned that, the Palestinian Civil Defence and ambulance crews, face significant obstacles in retrieving the bodies, due to the difficult terrain.
Palestinian security sources said that, crowded with Gazans, the area had been classified by the Israeli regime’s military as, a “safe area,” before they strike.
In a statement released last night, Hamas slammed the bombing as “complete defiance and disregard for the decision of the International Court of Justice (ICJ), that demanded the Zionist regime to stop its aggression against Rafah.”
It also noted that, the Israeli regime would not have committed such heinous crimes without the support and green light from the U.S., saying, it holds the U.S. administration fully responsible for the deadly attack.
The Israel Defence Forces (IDF) said in a statement that, “an IDF aircraft struck a Hamas compound in Rafah, in which significant Hamas terrorists were operating.”
“The strike was carried out against legitimate targets under international law, using precise munitions and on the basis of precise intelligence that indicated Hamas’ use of the area,” it added.
On May 7, the Israeli army announced that, it had taken control of the Palestinian side of the Rafah crossing, situated south of the Gaza Strip on the border with Egypt, and in the eastern area of Rafah, which resulted in a halt in aid entering Gaza.
Israel considers Rafah a last stronghold for Hamas, which has controlled the Gaza Strip since 2007.– NNN-WAFA
